Florida Supreme Court issued the following announcement on Mar. 12.
On March 11, 2020, Chief Justice Charles Canady issued his first COVID-19 administrative order, advising courts around the state to monitor the fast-developing emergency.
“(P)reparations for COVID-19 are now a high priority in the Florida State Courts System,” he wrote in that first order. With more than 50 administrative orders, amendments, and guidelines issued and distributed in the year that followed, protecting the health and safety of those compelled to come before courts in the state has remained a priority while the work of the judicial branch has continued.
Two days later, the full import was seen when the Chief Justice issued an order suspending jury trials and grand jury proceedings throughout the state in response to the public health emergency.
The orders represented the first in an ongoing series with sweeping implications for courts and the delivery of justice. Subsequent actions limited in-person court proceedings and directed courts to conduct all business remotely that could be done that way. Technology was implemented quickly for all judges in the state to conduct remote hearings and other proceedings under orders issued to accommodate changes in court rule. The work of the judicial branch continued with hundreds of thousands of court events held by video conference and over the phone.
The Supreme Court and district courts of appeal continued to work as well. On May 6, the Supreme Court held oral arguments remotely by video conference for the first time in its history. Transparency and openness were maintained as the oral arguments were broadcast on the internet, cable systems statewide, and social media.
A few milestones for Florida courts during the pandemic:
• 2.9 million cases are projected to be disposed by judges in Florida’s trial courts during fiscal year 2020-21.
• 250,000 Zoom meetings with 3.2 million participants were conducted by Florida’s courts statewide for the year prior to March 10, 2021.
• 752 Zoom webinars have been held, with 22,000 participants. On average, each Zoom license holder spent 1,550 hours conducting a variety of activities in support of the branch.
• 12,674 cases, on an annualized basis, are likely to be disposed by Florida’s five district courts of appeal in the 2020-21 fiscal year when 11,547 cases, similarly annualized, are estimated to be filed .
• 2,013 cases were disposed by the Florida Supreme Court in 2020 when 1,903 cases were added to the docket.
• 1,905 orders were issued by the Florida Supreme Court last year.
The pandemic not only changed how Florida’s courts conducted business in the last year but will also have a lasting impact going forward.
“Our response to the pandemic will forever change the way Florida’s courts operate. Our new ways of doing things have been welcomed by attorneys and are very popular with many of those who come to the courts. Remote proceedings are here to stay,” Canady said during a presentation to legislators earlier this year. “Where we can do it remotely and reduce the burden on lawyers and litigants by the use of remote technology, I believe we’ll be committed to doing that.”
While state courts have continued working and delivering justice, Florida’s courts have developed a Pandemic Recovery Plan to address the 1.2 million pending cases expected on July 1 above the normal caseload the branch would face were it not for the effects of the pandemic. The Supreme Court has sought funding in its Legislative Budget Request. The plan contemplates using senior judges and part-time general magistrates to address the additional workload. Further resources, such as case managers and staff attorneys, are also included in the request to address the increased workload due to the public health emergency.
All trial courts in the state are in phase 2 under the procedures put in place by Chief Justice Canady’s administrative orders. That status allows for limited in-person court events, including jury trials now taking place all around the state, with safety protocols instituted by each jurisdiction as appropriate to local conditions and resources.
Original source can be found here.